Sunday, September 30, 2007

Western New York State

Letchworth State ParkSeptember 26, 2007 A pretty drive South on Highway 98. Bluffs along the Tonawonda River were covered with trees. Fall colored leaves in "neon" colors, dairy farms, roadside markets selling pumpkins, squash, vegetables and of course, Maple Syrup! An unusual sight was semi loads of silage. Doeblers Hybrid Corn, Beans and Alalfa was advertised. The highway into Warsaw was unusually steep, rocky and scenic.

The Letchworth State Park is about 36 miles south of Rochester, New York. It follows a 17 mile stretch of the GeneseeRier between Mt. Morris and Portageville. It is referred to as "New York's Grand Canyon" because of the awesome gorge in the center of the park. You will see 600 feet sheer rock walls and three major waterfalls as you drive through. It has trails, walkways, areas for picnicking and camping, and wildlife including deer.

Interstate 86 along the southern border of New York is a scenic drive, too. We spent a rainy evening in Jamestown as we headed back home.

Utica, IllinoisSeptember 28, 2007The I & M Canal was built between 1836 and 1848 to make navigation possible from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The canal was dug from Chicago to LaSelle, Illinois on the Illinois River. This enabled produce to be moved to the east and opened up migration to the west. The 96 mile long canal had paths on each side for the mules to tow the boats. After the railroads were built the canal was closed in 1933. Now there is a hiking/biking trail along the canal.

The Illinois River was made navigable with a series of locks and dams. The Army Core of Engineers have a visitor center and observation deck at the lock just south of Utica, Illinois. The tug, Ralph Plagge, was taking part of its load through when we were there. It had to split its line of barges in order to fit in the lock. It took over half-hour for the pumps to raise the water level so that they could go through the lock and hook up with the rest of the barges. It takes time to move products on the river! One of the barges was half filled with pieces of metal, but it was heavy enough to make a barge load!

Inside the Visitor center is the history of the canal and the River. A pilot house from a tug boat with all the instruments. It included a Mark Twain Fathometer! The size of the ropes and cables indicate that those working on the barges are "strong". We use a road atlas all the time, there is a river atlas that shows each portion of the river channel for the boat pilots to use.

Back on the PrairieSeptember 29, 2007 A stay with daughter and family to attend a homecoming high school football game,(grandson was a king candidate) gave us an opportunity to see some family before we arrived home.

Thanking the Lord for traveling safety and the opportunity to see His creation and how He has given us the ability to use it make life easier. Prairie Schooners

About Me

We are a couple living on a Prairie acreage in the mid-west. We've traveled "life" together for nearly 50 years. Traveling by car to places off the beaten path. Never taking the same route home is our tradition! Retirement brought the opportunity to deliver new Winnebago Motor Homes all over the US and Canada, visiting new places, learning about the history of an area, and tasting the local cuisine. We will be sharing with you what we see & learn on our travels through this season of our lives! Since our life is a journey we will also be sharing life lessons learned over the years. Come travel with us!